Governor Rounds
Brings good and bad news about flood threat
by George Thompson
Gov. Mike Rounds was in Waubay last week where he brought some good and bad news when it comes to the potential flood threat in Waubay and the rest of Day County.
Rounds and his disaster team said it was no longer a matter if, it was a matter of when.
According to the latest projections by the National Weather Service the ground was saturated last fall and added another 1-2 inches of moisture over the winter. Snow depths in Day and two neighboring counties are some of the deepest in the state with a water content of another 4-6 inches. “We’ve got a tremendous amount of water in the ground and settling in the snow,” remarked Tom Dravland, Public Safety chief. “It’s comparable to the winter of 1996-97 and we are going to need all of your help,” he warned county, municipal and township officials attending the meeting.
Rounds said the state’s chief concerns with floods are protecting people and public infrastructure. “Bit-ter Lake is a big problem,” he added.
Latest Corps forecast shows the lake rising to an 1,805 level, six feet higher than it is now.
The governor said the Corps of Engineers will be coming to Waubay next week to assess the problem and the state is prepared to help the town protect or move its endangered lift stations. “Corrections can help with sandbagging and the DOT and National Guard are ready to help with their equipment,” the governor added.
Dravland said the real wild card in all of this is what the weather does in March and April. He said experts believe the typical March 15 start date to the melt off will get backed up 10-12 days given the existing snowpack.
Rounds urged all those attending to submit vital information to the local emergency management coordinator who will foward it on to Pierre.
Wes Williams, Day County OEM coordinator, said his office is working on some worst case scenarios. He said the county has about 1,200 sandbags on hand and plans to have 6,000 more by week’s end.
He said arrangements are being made for 24/7 law enforcement and getting a line on porta potties should either be needed. He also urged township officials to notify OEM when roads go underwater.
Kristi Turman, state Division of Emergency Services, explained what is eligible under federal disaster mitigation, concentrating on homes that have to be moved out of the flood plain. Waubay officials said there could be as many as 8-9 homes that will need to be moved if Bitter Lake rises to 1,805. Turman noted state sandbagging crews would be available as soon as they are requested.
Rounds summed up the session by saying, “We will move assets when they’re needed. The big thing will be prioritization. Make sure you have supplies of the kind of sand available.”
The governor also reminded elected officials to push their constituents to get flood insurance and had some harsh words for Congress where the federal flood insurance program renewal is stalled due to partisan bickering. “What’s happing there is flat out incompetence,” he charged. “This is not a responsible way to handle government in this country.”
